Gordon Ramsay – How to Cook a Perfect Steak

This recipe comes from Gordon Ramsay’s F Word -

Gordon Says “don’t be afraid to cook a steak on the big night. If you follow these simple rules, it will be easy. Let the pan get nice and hot. If there’s no heat in the pan, there’s no color. If there’s no color, there’s no flavor”. Make sure the steak is relaxed, meaning it’s at room temperature. A relaxed steak will cook quicker, and won’t be stone cold in the center. Ingredients needed to cook a perfect steak couldn’t be simpler, so grab a steak next time you’re at the market, and treat yourself to a delicious meal.

Keep in mind, stove cooked steaks can produce lots of smoke while cooking. Open the windows before you start, and turn on the exhaust fan.

Ingredients:

New York Steak (or your preferred cut)
Salt
Freshly Cracked Pepper
Butter
Neutral Oil (flavorless cooking oil)

Directions:

Use a generous amount of salt and pepper to season the steak, and gently press it into the meat with your fingers. The thicker the cut of steak, the more salt and pepper you will need.

Use a heavy pan for cooking steak. Cast iron pans work best for this particular meal. Get the pan nice and hot, then add the oil. Wait for the oil to heat up, it should just start to smoke before adding the steak. Add the steak and push it down in the center with your fingers to ensure the entire steak is touching the bottom of the pan.

It’s very important to only flip the steak once during cooking. Moving the steak around while cooking it will only drain it of essential juices and lead to a less than desirable result. For rare, cook 2-3 minutes on the first side, then flip the steak. About 1 1/2 minutes into the second side, melt butter into the pan. Spoon the butter over the steak, ensuring to cover the entire steak. When the steak is just about finished, turn it onto it’s back, fat side down. Cook for about 30 seconds to reduce and soften the strip of fat. Remove steak from pan, and baste again with butter from the pan. Leave to rest, then slice if desired.

You can test doneness of the steak by comparing the firmness of the steak to parts of your hand. Rare is on your thumb muscle, near your palm, medium is near the outer edge of your thumb, and well-done is where your wrist meets your hand. Watch the video for a visual explanation of firmness. Embedding is disabled on the video for some reason, but you can watch it by clicking the link.

F Word
How to cook a perfect steak.

7 Responses

michael acitelli writes:
October 8th, 20119:32 pmat

I want to thank Gordon Ramsay for turning my life around health wise as and otherwise. I was a vegetarian for over ten years but I will eat a steak prepared by chef Ramsay or a chef he approves of. In fact I will eat meat now if cooked properly and looks appealing to my taste buds. I love how he is honest and filled with integrity, and calls people out on their bullshit every fuckin time. You are my new hero and I am going to even go to school so I can try and be a chef. Thank you Gordon you are a great human being. -Michael A.
Rene Burlet writes:
October 14th, 20119:20 pmat

Chef Ramsay , is very talented but his use of the english language is rubbish. I have been involved in the cooking world far longer than Chef Ramsay and can tell you , if you need to get your restaurant up and running he is a waste of time. Here is the secret handshake in one minute. Clean your kitchen perfectly , have a simple menu, Know who is in charge absolutely, never use a microwave oven and use fresh products always…. Know your community , what do they want….. Sorry Chef Ramsay it’s really not that hard…..
Foodie writes:
October 15th, 201111:17 amat

I assume you’re referring to Kitchen Nightmares. Gordon doesn’t help people start restaurants in that show, he helps them save their restaurant. Usually the owner has slipped into horrible habits, and is self-deluded. What Chef Gordon Ramsay does is give them the jolt of reality they need to get back on track. He also injects the restaurant with fresh energy, money, and customers. Perhaps the formula isn’t hard, but seeing past one’s self-delusions and time acquired depression can be extremely difficult without outside perspective.
nova creason writes:
December 31st, 201111:36 amat

I think chef Ramesy is is great.He helps people who need it even when they act like jerks.His ability to turn nothing into something great always surprises me and he is very easy on the eyes that never hurts!
Rene Burlet writes:
January 12th, 20128:14 pmat

I completely agree with your assessment. I hope there are new episodes in the future. I enjoy” kitchen nightmares” over the “F word” by far.
Rene Burlet writes:
April 26th, 201212:28 amat

very nice , simple and elegant.
snaketheslayer writes:
May 5th, 201210:11 pmat

ive always cooked my steaks on the grill. I tried this skillet method w fried shrimp and sauteed fresh green beans, it was excellent, thanx for the tip.